“Ain’t No Way” – Emotional Arik Armstead Opens Up on 49ers Pay Cut & Subsequent Release as San Francisco Prioritize Javon Hargrave & Nick Bosa

About 3 weeks back, news came that the San Francisco 49ers were asking Kyle Juszczyk to take a pay cut. His renewed 5-year $27 million deal he signed in 2021 quickly became a subject of contention. Now, something even worse has happened to the defensive lineman Arik Armstead. The Niners also asked him to take a pay cut, but Armstead couldn’t swallow his pride and moved on.

The DL took to the media after the mishap and poured his heart about why he moved on from the Niners. The major reason for the cascade is that the DE felt “disrespected” by the 49ers and didn’t think he deserved this kind of treatment after having a Super Bowl runner-up season. But he will be somewhere in Florida now.

The 49ers were lowballing Arik Armstead

The 49er DE told the media that the Niners offered him a measly one-year $6 million contract which could go up to $8 million if he manages to cash in the incentives. The athlete mentioned how this price tag was not suited to his skill level and that he felt “extremely disrespected” by his own team.

Armstead knew that with his skill level, he could get a better deal than any other team in the NFL. That’s why he decided to sign with the Jacksonville Jaguars, a 3-year contract worth a whopping $43.5 million. But what the 49ers did to him made him doubt himself as a top-level athlete. He couldn’t believe it was happening to him after he had a 27 tackle and 5 sack season.

“It’s crazy how, being in this position, you’ll start to even question yourself a little bit. For a split second, I was like, ‘Dang, am I really not like that?’ No, ain’t no way,” said Armstead to the media.

Something to note here is that the 49ers chose to retain Nick Bosa and Javon Hargrave instead of paying up Armstead. A very bizarre thing is that Bosa will make about $1.1 million as base salary, but the catch is, he is getting $10 million as signing bonus every year for the next 3 years as well. That’s $40 million just in signing bonus. Similarly, Hargrave is making about $1.2 million this year, but for 4 years (including now) he will make $4.6 million as signing bonus per year. That’s enough to feel disrespected and aggravated about.

But despite the disappointment, the DE found something to fight for.

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Armstead couldn’t refuse the Jaguars offer

After playing 9 seasons with the Niners, his 3-year deal with the Jaguars makes him eligible for a $51 million payout (including incentives). He was supposed to make about $17.4 million with the Niners, but they asked him to take a pay cut. His last sack with the 49ers came in the Super Bowl when he sacked Patrick Mahomes.

Now the veteran will play along the likes of Josh Allen, Foye Oluokun, Roy Robertson-Harris, Travon Walker, Devin Lloyd and others. By acquiring him, the Jaguars hope to elevate their defense to a Super Bowl level and hope for the best.

What are your favorite Arik Armstead moments? Comment down below.

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